The Australian technology market is changing at an exponential rate. We’ve seen a huge rise in the adoption of emerging technologies and expansion of the startup space, with more incubators, increased access to funding and more community support than ever before.
For many startups, Ruby is a language of choice and as they scale, the decision to stick with, or move away from Ruby becomes an important one.
In this research we invited over 400 Ruby on Rails engineers to share insights into the market.
What you’ll learn from this article
Let’s get to it.
Shocked? Don’t fear, 41% of engineers surveyed believe the commercial use of Ruby on Rails will remain steady for the future. Leaving 26% who think the use of Ruby on Rails is set to decrease over the coming years.
We’re seeing established, post-funded tech companies like Envato and Culture Amp doubling-down their investment into Ruby with aggressive hiring strategies. With some Ruby on Rails houses set to recruit over 40 RoR Engineers this financial year.
Equally, we’ve seen new tech startups considering their options with alternative languages and frameworks. In 2019 and beyond, Ruby on Rails’ speed of development may no longer be the obvious choice. From a review of Angel List’s job board, it’s clear Ruby has strong competition from server-side JavaScript and Python.
Which is great news, but does this indicate a 1 in 3 drop off and should the Ruby on Rails community be concerned about this? If there is indeed a continued decrease in new startups investing in Ruby on Rails and signs of more established high-growth businesses opting to move to other languages, could this be the beginning of Ruby’s decline?
What we are seeing is an increase in tech businesses diversifying their tech stack. GitHub is a recent example of this as they’ve made a move to Go and Java. This is not to say that everyone will move away from Ruby on Rails, natural attrition is part of any cycle and we’ll learn later in the article what other languages Ruby on Rails engineers are learning to stay relevant.
Almost 50% of engineers think Ruby’s biggest threat is to do with factors beyond their control, such as new trends in the market or companies migrating to another language.
However, a quarter suggest that performance issues remain a primary concern for the longevity of the language. Scaling issues have always been directed to Rails and in more recent years we’ve seen businesses move away from Ruby to realise growth plans. Consider that with Bleacher Report’s migration from Ruby on Rails to Elixir & Phoenix, they decreased server numbers from 150 to 5! Will other tech business opt for such a robust platform and follow Bleacher Report’s lead?
Only 17% of engineers surveyed believe a decline in popularity, or development of better languages, would be a viable threat to Ruby on Rails.
50% of Ruby on Rails engineers feel its attraction to startups is what will help to increase RoR use in the future.
Anecdotally speaking, thinking back to 2015 when I entered the Ruby recruitment market, I recall startups choosing to use Ruby on Rails as a “no-brainer” option. Since then, I’ve seen an ongoing reduction in the number of startups choosing Ruby on Rails for a variety of reasons. Could this be set to continue or is this is a trend set to reverse?
A third of engineers believe that addressing Ruby’s current weaknesses will be instrumental to its wider adoption. And 15% believe the loyal open source community who contribute in addressing these problems will help to strengthen it even more.
Ruby on Rails engineers admit that to stay relevant over the next few years, they’ll need to learn additional skills to ensure they are ‘future fit’ for new working environments and job opportunities. We asked engineers to tell us which languages they would learn to help stay attractive to future employers.
There were 4 clear winners with Node.js topping the table for top language to learn in 2019.
From a recruitment perspective, the desire to learn Node.js, Go, Python and Elixir matches the demands of our client base – these skills, along with Ruby, are in high and constant demand.
Node.js is hugely popular for businesses of all shapes and sizes because of its performance on real-time applications. Specifically, we’re seeing the contract market boom for JavaScript requirements across Sydney.
Python has had a resurgence through the growing field of data science. Elixir’s robustness is seen by many as the solution to Ruby’s scaling issues. And Golang is gaining traction in the blockchain world.
Only 4% of Ruby engineers are so confident in Ruby that they don’t need to learn another language
Ruby on Rails has in many ways been the ultimate framework for startups, and in recent years some businesses (like Envato and Culture Amp) have been able to scale significantly using Ruby as their core platform.
For many organisations like Netflix and Github, Ruby on Rails forms part of a heterogenous stack of technologies. Naturally, this has led them to needing engineers with diverse skills across various languages.
While very few Ruby engineers see no obvious need to learn another language, most of the community see benefits to growing their skill set to include Node.js, Python, Go or Elixir.
“It’s our view that the long term success of Ruby on Rails relies on the next generation of tech start ups having confidence that Ruby will in fact allow them to scale.”
To achieve this confidence, founders and entrepreneurs will need to see larger, more established businesses continue to invest in Ruby. And see ‘role-model’ brands in the industry reap benefits from scaling with Ruby, which can only be achieved by working through its current challenges.
Furthermore, the loyalty of the open source community and their commitment to solving these scalability issues will lead to increased adoption.
We’d love to hear from you – Spare 5 minutes and tell us what YOU think of the Future of Ruby
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The second Techies Who Give A Sh*t event for 2022 was a hit!
We heard from 3 growing companies developing novel solutions from medical imaging technology, cognitive performance headsets and AI-as-a-medical-device.
Insights into these innovative products while catching up with new and old friends in the tech space over a piece of pizza was what it was all about and we can't wait for round #3!
Check out Techies Who Give A Sh*t on LinkedIn and stay tuned for details on the next event 😉
#medtech #emvision #neurode #harrisonai #morsemicro #techforgood
A big hello to Illona who is the most recent member of the Onset crew, bringing over 18 years' of experience in Executive Recruitment to our team.
Illona has partnered with some of the world’s most exciting brands and run searches across Commercial Leadership, Product, Tech and Marketing from both local and International markets.
"I have been lucky in my career to have worked with exceptional people, to have met inspirational business leaders, and to have seen firsthand the evolution of the digital and tech sector."
Welcome Illona and to all of the exciting exploits you will bring to Onset 👋👏
#executivesearch #team #executiverecruitment #executiveservices #leadership
At Onset, we care deeply about real human connections.
We build relationships that last a lifetime and celebrate the difference and value of each individual. Working with us means we will connect you to the best opportunities available – you’ll always have us in your corner.
Plus we will top it off with a gift pack once you land your new role 🎁 Sasha has it covered with the experience of her candidates always top of mind!
Technology evolves overtime, and so our knowledge must.
Every Onset recruiter works in a niche market specialisation meaning they’re highly networked, and have a deep understanding of recruitment in their sector.
Covering the practice for all things Mechatronics, Electronics and Embedded Engineering is Julien and Toby. Connect with them for more insight into opportunities in the space!
Julien is also the owner of the Techies Who Give A Sh*t community. Their next event is coming up this Thursday featuring some incredible speakers in the Aussie digital health and medical technology market.
Check out the link in the comments for more info and RSVP today!
#techieswhogiveashit #embeddedengineering #mechatronics #electronics #iot
“If my mind can conceive it, and my heart can believe it—then I can achieve it."
Inspiration is the cornerstone of everything we do at The Onset... not least our choice of office artwork. You'll find motivation and inspiration at every turn!
#designwithinspiration #muhammadali #officeart #motivation #inspiration
In recruitment, it's not just what you know, but who you know. And we know the hiring manager!
We work with some incredible businesses who are making waves across a range of industries. @priyavase is Onset's Practice Lead for Product recruitment and Executive Search, and experiences first-hand how these companies, individuals and innovations are making an impact in the market.
To be a contributor in building the teams that make it happen is a huge reward in recruitment, and we love being a part of the journey.
#techrecruitment #product #executivesearch
Full house feels...
Our end of month team huddle is feeling back to normal with some full couches in the office!
Congratulations given out for the previous month and a good pep talk for the month to come. Our end of month wraps gives us a good boost, even for those tuning in remotely on the big screen 📺
#techrecruitment #eomwrap #officelife #remotework #team
Are you an experienced or aspiring recruiter open to a new venture in your career?
We’re leading the way and raising the bar for technology recruitment in Australia. As the business and our network grows, new opportunities open up, which is why we’re looking for people to help us in continuing to raise that bar!
We build teams in some amazing businesses. Are you ready to join a driven, diverse team and overall great bunch of people?
We would love to hear from you and discuss how you can grow with us on our journey. Find out more and get in touch to be a part of the Onset experience - theonset.com.au/join
Join us for the second instalment of Techies Who Give A Sh*t, live and in-person on 9th June at Morse Micro's offices in Surry Hills.
The topic of the day? Solutions in Aussie digital health and medical technology.
Techies Who Give A Sh*t was created to facilitate discussion and awareness around using and creating tech for a good cause. This next event will be hosted by Julien, Onset's Practice Lead for Deep Tech & IoT. He will be joined by 3 awesome speakers who are all doing fascinating things in the market right now with cutting edge MedTech solutions.
So, if you fancy a slice of apres-work pizza and a bevvie, head down to Morse Micro at 5.30pm on 9th June. Invite your friends and colleagues too, the more the merrier!
*Note - there is limited space so make sure to RSVP via the MeetUp Event to secure a spot - link in the comments!
#medtech #digitalhealth #techforgood #emvision #neurode #harrisonai
And here we "grow" again!
Introducing 5 new team members to the Onset crew in the past month 👋
Kylie joins our ever-growing Product team, working alongside Priya as a Principal Consultant.
Coming on board with Russell in the JavaScript world is Nina.
Junmer will be working with Reema, specialising in QA roles.
Joining forces with Danielle in the .Net market is Sazy.
And last but not least, in the Data domain with Ronny and the crew is June.
The power of 5, they are already making waves in their areas of expertise, and we are so excited to have them on board!
#techreceuitment #team #softwareengineering #javascript #data #product #qa #techjobs #recruitment
"I heard it was take your kid to work day, so I brought my dog."
Yoshi claiming his favourite spot in the office 😍
#onsetteam
Get your hands on opportunities that are engineered to your needs.
We have an extensive team covering the Software Engineering domain and they can help you land that next big move in your career across contract, permanent or leadership roles.
Check out our open roles at marketplace.theonset.com.au and get in touch today to meet a dedicated recruiter in your space.
#softwareengineering #technologyrecruitment #softwaredeveloper #backend #frontend #fullstack #qaengineering #techjobs #java #javascript #react #python #phpdeveloper #angular #softwaredeveloperjobs
It's "Hamo" Time ☀️
We were finally able to escape the brunt of lockdowns with a team trip to Hamilton Island, where we got to properly celebrate our mega year of achievements in absolute style!
Dinner on the dock, giant water slides, white parties, paddle boarding, turtle spotting, cocktails by the pool, delicious food, sunsets, and loads of laughs. It was the ultimate team experience surrounded by great people and all around good vibes.
We love our crew, we love what we do and we love to celebrate our wins together.
Want to be a part of it? Reach out today - theonset.com.au/join
Our Onset fam has grown again, as we welcome Jade and Marianna!
Two women setting the recruitment world alight...
Jade is a talent solutions whizz across start-up, scale-up and enterprise, and is already stuck into projects with some of our clients, getting them ahead of the game in the Australian market.
While Marianna is here to drive the professional development of our team members, open up new horizons for Onset's culture, and generally refine the employee and community experience.
Exciting times ahead in our world and we are beyond excited to have Jade and Marianna on board and as integral parts of our growth journey!
#newhires #techrecruitment #executiverecruitment #teamculture #talentsolutions
You're talented. We see you.
We will have your back throughout the entire recruitment process, matching your expertise with our own as we filter out the best roles for you from our extensive database.
Want to know more? Check out our full range of tech jobs at marketplace.theonset.com.au and get in touch to find out how we can help you thrive in your industry.
#techrecruitment #executiverecruitment #jobopportunities #techjobs
Five years of Onset and counting...
We recently celebrated the amazing Sarah's 5th work-iversary and her huge contribution to our company. A true OG Onset-ter.
She has been pivotal in building our culture, systems and seeing that all of our Onset family, including our clients and candidates, are supported.
Sarah now works across all things finance, contracts administration and operations. She always makes sure that everyone has a smooth process working with us, is paid on time, and never fails to keep the Onset vibe alive!
#theonset #workanniversary #techrecruitment #happy5years
What a great first event we had with the Techies Who Give A Sh*t crew last week!
We heard from two amazing speakers, George Peppou, CEO of @itsjustvow and Mark Harrison, Head of Engineering for Nexport.
They provided insights into their solutions in the market from the next generation of zero emission smart transport, to a new category of sustainable, abundant and irresistible food.
It was great to meet fellow techies and start a conversation around using and creating tech for a good cause. We can't wait to see you all at the next one!
Head over to the Techies Who Give A Sh*t group on LinkedIn and keep your eyes peeled for details on the upcoming event - MedTech edition.
#vow #nexport #morsemicro #twgas #techevents
What a start to the year 💥
Catching up on introducing some of our new starters as we have had a huge couple of months expanding our team! We are extremely excited to have some great people join us, bringing a world of experience to our crew across a range of areas.
Ahad is our Practice lead for the DevOps, Cloud and Infrastructure space.
Nidhi will be working with Dan across Marketing and Sales.
Toby is already smashing it out of the park for roles in Embedded Engineering.
Renee is settling right in working with Priya in the Product space.
Aleksandra joins us recruiting across UX / UI Design.
Joselle has been working with John in the Project Services area.
David will also be recruiting for DevOps, Cloud and Infrastructure.
Hadassah is our new copywriter bringing her way with words and advertising skills to support the team and elicit the best candidates that the tech market has to offer.
We are always on the look out for additions to our team as we continue to grow. Reach out now to find out what we have on offer for you - theonset.com.au/join
Cheers to all of the amazing ladies that we work with at Onset as well as across our network and community!
We had a celebratory lunch for those who braved the weather today. We are always over the moon to be working with such a great team of women!
Onset values diversity, equality and inclusion. We can all work together to #BreakTheBias.
Happy International Women's Day!